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I came across the following sentence in this [link] (When to use the gerund form of a verb after "to"?).

"As an example of domestic violence, she referred to his beating her up".

Could someone help me understand why it's "his beating her up" and not "him beating her up"?

I was not able to find similar examples online ...

Thank you!

Maurice
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2 Answers2

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If you use the subjective case his, the emphasis is on the beating. Here, the phrase “beating her up” is taken as a single unit. The clause after the comma is structurally similar to sentences such as the following:

  • He referred to his notes.
  • She referred to his eating habits.

If you use the objective case him, the emphasis is on the person doing the beating, with the words “beating her up” providing more information about the “he”. The structure of the clause would then convey a similar sense to the structure of the following:

  • He referred to the man who was walking on the sidewalk.
  • She referred to the gardener mowing the grass.
Lawrence
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In this case, the gerund (-ing) functions as a noun which can accordingly be modified by a possessive adjective. See https://brians.wsu.edu/2016/05/19/gerunds-pronouns/ You can also express the same content by using the pronoun "him". The semantic difference is very subtle. The possessive version emphasises the action done by "him", that is "beating". The version with the pronoun emphasises the doer, that is "the beater". There is mainly a difference in style. As the writer of the linked article argues, the "possessive version" sounds more elegant.